LÖNNROT, ELIAS (publ.).
Kalevala. Toinen painos (Second impression).Suomalaisen Kirjallisuuden Seuran (The Finnish Literary Society), Helsinki 1849. 8vo. IX+(1)+368+(2) pages. Contemporary dark green half-calf binding. Slight edgewear. Bookplates on front pastedown. Pencil notes (in Finnish) on back endpaper.. Attractive copy of the first complete edition of the Finnish national epic. ** Elias Lönnrot (1802-84) stands as the all-time pioneer in refining and preserving the Finnish language which thorugh centuries was threatened by Swedish. From the late 1820s, Lönnrot (who originally was a doctor) collected folk tales from peasants (quite in the European romantic tradition and spirit). The monumental result of these efforts was the first version of the Kalevala (1835-36), which was expanded to the second and final version (the so-called "New Kalavala" in 1849
[Bookseller: Vangsgaards Antikvariat]